China begins once-in-a-decade census to gather details about its 1.4 billion population

China has started a census to collect information about the nation’s estimated 1.4 billion population, including data such as the identity number, gender, marital status, education and profession of each individual. The survey officially starting on November 1, 2020, is China’s seventh national census since the first one was done in 1953. To contain the spread of Covid-19, census officials are encouraging Chinese residents to scan a QR code and fill in demographic information on their mobile devices for uploading to a national database in real time. Unlike previous efforts when census officials used pens and paper, this time they will be able to record information using an app supported by tech giant Tencent. China’s census will run until December 10, and results from the survey will be released in April 2021.